Summary

The short story “Green Velvet” by Krzysztof Pelc begins with the narrator and his brother and father finding a green velvet sofa abandoned on their street corner. The narrator’s younger brother, Reza, is excited to bring the sofa home, while the father is more cautious. The narrator mentions that bringing the green velvet sofa home was the second risk that his father took, as the first one was emigrating from Iran to Canada.

As the three of them carry the sofa home, the narrator thinks about what the new change means for him. He is excited at the thought of inviting his friends over to see the sofa and imagines the family’s lives changing for the better. The narrator’s mother is reluctant to bring the sofa home but she eventually agrees and asks a neighbor for help carrying it inside. 

Once the sofa is inside the family’s living room, the narrator notices that it clashes with the other old-fashioned pieces of furniture and décor....